Royal Train

Now we're truly time travelling with plans for another curiosity piece to run on Minffordd, depicting one of the most unlikely trains to traverse the Cambrian Coast Line.I have surrendered to a temptation to recreate the liberation of Princess Royal class 6203 Princess Margaret Rose from captivity at the former Butlins holiday camp near Pwllheli.After withdrawal by BR the huge Stanier pacific was bought by the famous holiday camp entrepreneur and moved to North Wales in 1963, which is bang in the middle of when we are modelling Minffordd.Unfortunately for us, it arrived at Penychain via the former LMS line to Afon Wen, and never passed through Minffordd.Twelve years later, however, when it was moved again, this time to Derby, the route north to Bangor had been closed and in a very bold move - given what was later to emerge about the state of Barmouth Bridge! - it was carefully towed away along the Cambrian Coast, the movement being captured in a oft-shared photo of it about to pass…